Barrett S. Caldwell is Professor of Industrial Engineering (and Aeronautics & Astronautics) at Purdue. He has a PhD (Univ. of California, Davis, 1990) in Social Psychology and BS degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics and Humanities (MIT, 1985). His research team, the Group Performance Environments Research (GROUPER) Laboratory, examines and improves how people get, share, and use information well. GROUPER research highlights human factors engineering approaches to information flow, task coordination, and team performance in settings including aviation, healthcare, and spaceflight mission operations. Prof. Caldwell has advised or co-advised over 30 MS thesis students and 15 PhD students, and published over 150 scientific publications; current GROUPER research is funded by sources including AHRQ, FAA, NASA, and VA. He is a Fellow and Past Secretary-Treasurer of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES), a Purdue University Faculty Scholar, and Director of the NASA-funded Indiana Space Grant Consortium, promoting STEM education throughout Indiana.

Purdue College of Engineering media has reported multiple times on Prof. Caldwell’s appointment:

Prof. Caldwell’s 2016-17 Fellowship appointment is to the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Office of Japanese Affairs ("the Japan Desk"). In this role, Prof. Caldwell supports a wide range of environment, science, technology, and health aspects of the U.S. – Japan alliance, with a particular emphasis on science and technology innovation (STI). He has been involved with projects addressing STI directions in the context of future societal needs, and specific activities including Cancer Moonshot, STI and science diplomacy, and bilateral and trilateral (with the Republic of Korea) initiatives incorporating emerging technologies.